Waiting for God to Speak

Psalm 28

Patricia Raybon

Image: PRIXEL CREATIVE / LIGHTSTOCK

“Listen to my prayer for mercy as I cry out to you for help, as I lift my hands toward your holy sanctuary.” (Psalm 28:2)

My husband crawls to my side of the bed and kneels on the floor beside me. It’s daybreak. Our daily prayer time. So I scoot out of the covers and fall to my knees beside him. Still in our pajamas, we lean in to each other, read our devotional, and Dan starts to pray, “O God!”

Does God hear us? We don’t even ask that question. After 40 years of marriage, we’re finally willing to learn a little something about patience. About waiting on the Lord. About God’s curious tendency to delay his replies.

So we’re not panicked today for quick answers. We’re humbled that God would even take time to listen to us. We were married 35 years before we started praying together like this. If God would wait that long for a distracted wife and husband to finally seek him together for their marriage, for family members, for life questions and more—then patiently reveal his answers—we have no doubt that God is good and God hears.

Call it amazing. Maybe that’s why David frames his plea in Psalm 28 by first acknowledging who God is: “my rock.” Not like the chalky caves near the Valley of Elah; God, in David’s eyes, is as enduring as the granite peaks of Sinai. He still is.

Like a silent rock, however, “Do not turn a deaf ear to me,” David begs God. “For if you are silent, I might as well give up and die” (verse 1).

If you're a TCW member, log in to get your free copy of Sanctuary for My Soul, a 4-week devotional journey through Psalms. If you're not a member, you can purchase your own copy at this link.

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